Germany recorded its second consecutive daily record for new coronavirus cases on Friday as infections pick up across Europe, and its disease control center said unvaccinated people now face a “very high” risk of infection.The country saw...

A number of parents have been left in limbo after their preferred school transport provider was forced to stop driving their children to school as a result of a registration mix-up that took place at the beginning of the scholastic year.Their childre...

Marília Mendonça, one of Brazil’s most popular singers and a Latin Grammy winner, died Friday in an airplane crash on her way to a concert. She was 26.Mendonça’s press office confirmed her death in a statement, and sa...

The winners of the 2021 Doreen Micallef National Poetry Contest were announced on the evening of Friday 5 November during a ceremony at the Malta Book Festival presented by Claudia Gauci.Out of the 50 eligible submissions entered for this year’...

The hospitality industry is one of those which has struggled the most during the Covid-19 pandemic.As tourism dried up, of course, so did business for those in the hotel and catering industry, and so did the jobs.  Indeed, in 2020 the industry&r...

Malta will offer Covid-19 booster shots to everyone aged 12 and over, Health Minister Chris Fearne has announced.Speaking in a press conference on Friday, Fearne said that the decision has been taken to give the booster shot to everyone – altho...

Jonathan Johnson spent weeks on a ventilator battling COVID-19, then decided to get married — in the hospital.The 28-year-old man surprised his fiancée with the help of hospital staff and arranged a wedding last month in the intensive ca...

Two hyenas at the Denver Zoo have tested positive for the coronavirus, the first confirmed cases among the animals worldwide, a national veterinary lab announced Friday.Samples from a variety of animals at the zoo, including the spotted hyenas, were ...

Health authorities have reported 40 new cases of Covid-19 as the spike in cases of the virus continues to persist.13 have recovered, taking the number of active cases up to 298.It is the highest number of cases reported since 14 September, when 50 ne...

A tsunami drill simulation was conducted through joint efforts from the police, civil protection, ambulance, fire engine, the army and LESA. The simulation took place on Friday morning where a 1.5 metre tsunami drill was conducted around the fis...

BirdLife Malta has filed a judicial protest against the Minister for Gozo, the Minister for the Environment, the Wild Birds Regulation Unit (WBRU) and the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), demanding that Malta’s law courts revoke the n...

Six poachers were arrested over illegal trapping offences in the last eight days, while two more were convicted in court for similar offences yesterday, CABS said on Friday.In a statement, CABS said that their field operations have led to the arrest ...

Pfizer Inc. said Friday that its experimental antiviral pill for COVID-19 cut rates of hospitalization and death by nearly 90% as the drugmaker joins the race to bring the first easy-to-use medication against the coronavirus to the U.S. market.Curren...

Renowned actor Russell Crowe yesterday posted a photo of Filfla on Twitter, posing the question: 'where am I now?'The post saw thousands of likes and comments, with some quickly indicating that it is Filfla, and some others questioning whether it was...

Top officials at the World Health Organization said Thursday that Europe has seen a more than 50% jump in coronavirus cases in the last month, making it the epicentre of the pandemic despite an ample supply of vaccines.“There may be plenty of v...

The Office of the Commissioner for Children expressed its dismay that its recent appeal to the Ministry for Education and the teachers’ union to respect the fundamental rights of children to education and to have their best interests prioritise...

Blood test results will now be available in minutes thanks to a newly installed AI system following a €4.5 million investment at the Mater Dei pathology lab, Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Friday.Fearne said that the AI technology will als...

Former Nationalist MP Franco Debono was among three people nominated by Opposition Leader Bernard Grech for the post of chairperson of the Broadcasting Authority.All three – the other two being Maryanne Lauri and Raymond Zammit – were rej...

A visit to our capital city may now be enhanced by experiencing Underground Valletta, a newly launched Heritage Malta site which sheds light on the different uses of the passageways beneath Valletta along the centuries while enabling visitors to admi...

University students are once again paying for a lack of forward planning as well as a serious teacher shortage. This week, ten students who are due to start their teaching practice on Monday were told that this vital five-week period of their Masters...

A police union has told its members they can sport beards, dye their hair and wear coloured nail polish, as a debate on personal grooming turns into an industrial dispute.The Malta Police Union had taken issue with a circular, issued by the Police Co...

Business owners must offer better wages to their staff to tackle the “fundamental” issue of unavailable workers in the hospitality sector, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said on Thursday.During a seminar on human resources in the catering...

Magistrate Marseanne Farrugia will conduct a visit to the construction site later this month, where worker Lamin Jaiteh suffered serious injuries after falling from a height.In another marathon sitting in the case against Glenn Farrugia, Jaiteh&rsquo...

A priest was among many men who hit out at a PN candidate over her pro-choice views when it comes to abortion, with the priest describing Emma Portelli Bonnici as “Hitler, a satanist, a murderer, a butcher, and a criminal.”Portelli Bonnic...

Anyone who makes a false declaration with a public authority could be exposing themselves to criminal action, Standards Commissioner George Hyzler has warned. His comments came in a report on an investigation he had conducted into alleged dangerous d...

The iconic Boathouse restaurant in Xlendi is now completely gone, with nothing left of the seaside corner building.The building will now be replaced by a six-storey block which will house the same restaurant and bar, but also a host of apartments.The...

Relatives of the victim of a fatal pitbull attack had told the police that she had spent the last week of her life without electricity as the dogs’ owner had been trying to force her to leave her home, a court has heard.95-year-old Inez Galea d...

Over 400 migrants were rescued through the course of last night by the NGOs Sea-Eye and Mission Lifeline after coming into distress in Malta’s search and rescue zone, the two NGOs said in a joint statement.One of the vessels, the Sea-Eye 4, now...

Developer Stivala Group has signed a memorandum of understanding with Townsquare to purchase, develop and sell its 28-storey residential tower in the heart of Sliema, Times of Malta reports.ST Group chairman Micheal Stivala and a spokesperson for Tow...

Antonio Conte's first game in charge of Tottenham had five first-half goals, three red cards and a glimpse of the challenge he faces at the London club.Tottenham held on for a 3-2 home win over Vitesse Arnhem in the Europa Conference League on Thursd...

The ongoing talks with the Malta Union of Teachers are leaving positive results "over the few classes left without an educator due to union directives", the Education Ministry has said.The Malta Union of Teachers had previously registered an industri...

37 cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Thursday as a spike in cases persisted.17 people have recovered from the virus, taking the total number of active cases up to 271.8 virus patients are currently being treated at Mater Dei Ho...

A 73-year-old man was rushed to hospital on Thursday morning after he fell off a ladder inside a residence, police said.Police said in a statement that they were informed that assistance was required at a residence in Triq il-Fuxa in San Gwann at aro...

For decades, it's been one of Hollywood's darkest rumors: A teen-age Natalie Wood was sexually assaulted by a top movie star more than twice her age when she met with him at a hotel in Los Angeles.In a memoir coming out next week, Wood's younger sist...

A report issued by the Auditor General confirmed that people are being overcharged in their energy bills, PN MPs David Agius and Ryan Callus said in a press conference.“The way the government has been working out the bills has resulted in theft...

Konrad Mizzi’s will be called to attend a Public Accounts Committee sitting on 10 November, at 2pm, committee member PN MP Ryan Callus told The Malta Independent.Responding to a question by this newsroom regarding the sitting held on Wednesday,...

The congested car park at St James’s Counterguard adjacent to the Central Bank of Malta in Valletta has rendered three new electric car charging pillars inaccessible, as car park attendant attempts to manage an impromptu valet service. People t...

Many entrepreneurs believe that making it large in business is simple. Well, if you know the appropriate measures to take, it becomes simple. Many successful entrepreneurs are forex tradersHow did they achieve their success? According to the Forex br...

England’s deputy chief medical officer said Wednesday that too many people believe the pandemic is over, warning that the U.K.’s very high coronavirus rates and rising deaths mean that there are “hard months to come in the winter.&r...

Gozo Channel announced that it is extending its current ferry time table until Sunday 2 January 2022.In doing so, the Gozo Channel will maintain the current level of accessibility to Gozo, the company said in a statement. When compared to the schedul...

It’s not usual that the Commissioner for Children is so direct in her answers. Usually, she tries to avoid being in contrast with anything concerning the government. After all, she gets her position and salary from the government.So what she sa...

A 36-year-old was grievously injured in a traffic accident in Msida on Wednesday night at 7.15pm.The accident occurred on Triq il-Marina.The vehicles involved were a Ford Transit, driven by a 41-year-old Libyan who resides in Naxxar and a Sym Jet mot...

An elderly woman was injured when she was hit by a car in the San Gwann industrial estate on Wednesday evening, the police said.The woman, aged 75 and resident in Msida, was hit by a Volkswagen Touran, driven by a 56-year-old man of Swieqi.She was ta...

MP Konrad Mizzi appeared before the Public Accounts Committee on Wedesday, however the entire session was taken up by his “oral presentation” and back and forth arguments with the PN MPs.The committee was discussing the National Audit Off...

A decision by the Council of Europe on whether Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar should be sanctioned for possible ethical breaches has been delayed.The council has said that it requires more information from the Maltese Parliament before reaching its ...

The Animal Welfare Directorate followed all established and proper procedures in cases of dogs which had to be euthanised, an investigation by the Office of the Commissioner for Animal Welfare found. The Veterinary Surgeon’s Council (VSC) ...

Over 1,000 Gozitan and Maltese residents have objected to an application to change the zoning of 5,387 sqm of agricultural land that is currently designated as ODZ to a residential development zone in Għarb, Moviment Graffitti said in a statemen...

The number of new Covid-19 cases registered on Wednesday was 34, the highest tally since mid-September, the health authorities said.This was the first time since 15 September that the number of new cases was more than 30 - that time it was 32. On the...

An elderly woman and two young children have been hospitalised following a traffic accident in Naxxar. The accident took place on Tal-Balal Road at around 12:20.A police spokesperson said there was a collision between a Mitsubishi Lancer driven by a ...

Losses relating to electricity decreased by 76 per cent with the use of smart meters, resulting in savings of over €45 million. On the other hand, non-billed consumption relating to water remained stable over the project’s lifetime, the Na...

Liverpool and Ajax extended their perfect winning records in the Champions League on Wednesday to advance into the round of 16 — which is starting to take a 1970s throwback look.Liverpool cruised past Atlético Madrid 2-0 at Anfield&...

If elected in the United Nations Security Council, Malta will continue to strive to ensure that three-quarters of the ocean which do not fall under any state will be considered as a common heritage of humanity, Minister for Foreign and European Affai...

The Union of Professional Educators today delivered a ‘pudina’ to Permanent Secretary Frank Fabri Fabri as a “gesture to help him realise that his latest manoeuvre is unwarranted in the eyes of the union and of many prospective stud...

A pharmaceuticals supplier has distanced himself from a Halloween publicity stunt by Labour MP Rosianne Cutajar after she distributed toothpaste samples in trick or treat bags she handed out to children.Last week, the former Parliamentary Secretary p...

An abandoned space in Ħal Farruġ with an area of around 2,000m2 will be regenerated into an open space for the residents to enjoy, the government said today.Through an agreement with the Luqa Local Council, Parks Malta will be responsible f...

An argument in Marsa early on Wednesday has left two in hospital, police said.Police said in a statement that two men walked into the Hamrun district police station at around 00:300 on Wednesday, with injuries on their faces and hands.Preliminary inv...

Faced with sharply rising coronavirus cases, the caretaker prime minister of the Netherlands said Tuesday that the Dutch government is reinstituting an order to wear face masks in public places like stores and libraries and mandating an extension for...

The 12th edition of Rockestra – Times Like These, will take place on Friday 3 December at the MFCC in Ta’ Qali.Rockestra’s artistic director Paul Borg Bonaci and Rockestra’s musical director Sigmund Mi...

According to Eurostat data, 9.4% of Maltese residents consider their households problematic for being under lit. With a European Union average of 5.9%, Malta, France and Spain are almost double the 5.9% European average, with Spain and France sc...

A group of 49 migrants landed at Ghar Lapsi, Siggiewi, at 1.30pm on Tuesday, the Police said in a statement.Police went on site and saw a group of migrants trapped at the bottom of the cliff. Of the 49 migrants, 39 are men, four are women and six are...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has called on all countries to pull their weight in the fight against climate change.Addressing the COP 26 conference in Scotland, Abela spoke about the devastating impact climate change has, especially on small island sta...

Former FIFA officials Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini were charged with fraud and other offenses by Swiss prosecutors on Tuesday after a six-year investigation into a controversial $2 million payment.The 85-year-old Blatter and 66-year-old Platini no...

A magistrate presiding money laundering proceedings against Yorgen Fenech has granted him bail against a €100,000 total bail bond - however Fenech will remain in jail because of the charges he is facing separately for allegedly masterminding the...

At the beginning of the year, civil society NGO Repubblika made several proposals regarding Parliamentary reforms, a number of which are worth considering.One such proposal would see the President of Malta elected, rather than appointed. Another woul...

The judicial review under Article 469A of the Code of Organisation and Civil Procedure, Chapter 12 of the laws of Malta (the “Code”), is a staple judicial remedy that grants natural or legal persons the ability to request the Maltese cour...

Robert Lewandowski missed a penalty on Tuesday but still got a hat trick.The Poland star dominated on his 100th Champions League appearance to lead Bayern Munich into the last-16 after a 5-2 rout of Benfica.Juventus also booked its place in the ...

Education Minister Justyne Caruana insisted on Tuesday that the government is trying to find the best solution for teaching students who have had their teaching practice shifted to different schools just one week before it is set to start. On Monday,...

PACE monitors who were recently in Malta have called for reforms and said that a full-time Parliament should be established, among other things.Following a visit to Malta from 25 to 27 October, the co-rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee of the Pa...

PN MP Jason Azzopardi has breached parliamentary privilege by claiming on social media that government backbencher Rosianne Cutajar hurled insults at him during a parliamentary debate in 2018.Speaker Anglu Farrugia ruled on the complaint filed by Cut...

PN MP Mario Galea has called on people to boycott zoos if they care about animals.Speaking in Parliament, he did not blame the government alone for problems stemming from the trade of exotic animals, and said past PN administrations were also to blam...

A 59-year-old man was grievously injured after falling from a one-storey height in Sliema.The accident occurred on Tower Road at 11.15am.The man, from Isla, fell while he was conducting some works on a roof which gave way. The man was taken to Mater ...

A man has passed away while positive for Covid-19, as health authorities reported 29 new cases of the virus in their daily update on Tuesday.Authorities said that an 83-year-old man had died while positive for the virus.  He is Malta 462nd victi...

An environmental NGO is calling on the authorities to intervene and stop a massive project from being developed on the site of the Boathouse restaurant in Xlendi. Din l-Art Helwa Ghawdex has also called on the public to “protest the latest stro...

The Nationalist Party has said that, if elected, it will commission studies on Malta’s coastline and double funding for the management of national parks.The studies would be aimed at identifying areas in need of conservation.The PN issued a num...

MP Konrad Mizzi is set to attend a Public Accounts Committee Meeting about the Electrogas deal tomorrow, The Malta Independent is informed.This comes after the MP delayed his appearance before the committee for weeks.The former special projects minis...

MaltaToday journalist Raphael Vassallo has lost a libel suit he had filed against blogger and civil society activist Manuel Delia. Vassallo had taken umbrage at a blog post in which Delia had criticised an opinion piece he (Vassallo) he had written o...

The Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) and the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to continue up-skilling the AFM workforce. After the success of a previous agreement signed years ago, ...

Tottenham hired Antonio Conte on Tuesday as its third manager in seven months, handing a return to the Premier League for the title winner with Chelsea.Conte's contract runs through the end of the 2022-23 season with an option to extend. Conte arrive...

More than 100 countries pledged Tuesday to end deforestation in the coming decade — a promise that experts say would be critical to limiting climate change but one that has been made and broken before.Britain hailed the commitment as ...

October has been one of the wettest on record. Heavy rains characterised long stretches of the month, and on one particular day the amount of rain that fell on the Maltese Islands was normally what we would get on average for the whole month.This has...

Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis is working from home after injuring his foot.In a post on Facebook, Zammit Lewis said that he started November badly because of “a small incident”, but he intends to remain in touch with his job as min...

World leaders turned up the heat and resorted to end-of-the-world rhetoric Monday in an attempt to bring new urgency to sputtering international climate negotiations.The metaphors were dramatic and mixed at the start of the talks, known as ...

Roads in the Hal Farrug area are still closed to traffic on Tuesday morning after a fuel leak at Malta International Airport’s fuel storage facilityOn Monday, Enemed said that the fuel leak was stopped and the leaked fuel cleaned up.But On Tues...

Students studying to become teachers and who will start their teaching practice next week have been left shocked and frustrated after a sudden, last-minute decision by the Department of Education to change their school placements. The Malta Inde...

Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri described the PN’s proposal to buy back the land at Ħondoq ir-Rummien as ‘a dangerous concept’.Ħondoq ir-Rummien remains one of Gozo’s most picturesque bays, with tourists, Mal...

Nobody was injured after a light aircraft had to make an emergency landing at the Malta International Airport on Monday.The MIA said in a statement that at 14:19, a private light aircraft declared an emergency after the two crew members on board expe...

All necessary resources will be made available should there be a request to reopen the Egrant inquiry, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said on Monday. Caruana was replying to a number of parliamentary questions by PN MPs Jason Azzopardi and Karol Aqui...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said Monday that the Maltese Parliament has become a “toothless” and “is not equipped to carry out its duties in 2021.”During a brief speech commemorating 100 years of the Maltese Parliament, Gr...

The global death toll from COVID-19 topped 5 million on Monday, less than two years into a crisis that has not only devastated poor countries but also humbled wealthy ones with first-rate health care systems.Together, the United States, the...

The Broadcasting Authority has upheld a complaint by the Nationalist Party after the latter complained that PBS created a political imbalance by airing several government budget advertst.The authority noted that such adverts were political in nature ...

Government backbencher Rosianne Cutajar has raised a breach of privilege complaint against PN MP Jason Azzopardi over a Facebook post which he shared claiming that Cutajar had used vulgar language against him during a parliamentary debate.Cutajar fil...

20 new Covid-19 cases have been reported by health authorities in their daily update on the pandemic.9 people meanwhile have recovered, meaning that the number of active cases stands at 226.10 patients are currently being treated at Mater Dei Hospita...

A government led by the Nationalist Party would reopen all closed police stations in 24 months and improve national security with cctv schemes for homes.Addressing the media today, PN MP and Home Affairs spokesperson Beppe Fenech Adami highlighted is...

Children’s Commissioner Pauline Miceli said that she is “uncomfortable” seeing politicians give out sweets and treats to children as part of their campaigning.Replying to an email from independent election candidate Arnold Cassola, ...

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson opened a global climate summit Monday, saying the world is strapped to a “doomsday device.”Johnson likened an ever-warming Earth’s position to that of fictional secret agent James Bond — st...

The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) has issued a directive which affects community and outreach services provided by the nurses in the mental health settingThe union spoke about the situation in the sector. “Just a quick look at this ...

A refusal by an MP to give an account of his or her actions, especially if they served as a minister, is “incorrect” and “unworthy”, former Labour leader Alfred Sant writes.In a clear reference to the behaviour of MP Konrad Mi...

A fuel leak at Malta International Airport’s fuel storage facility was stopped and the leaked fuel cleaned up, Enemed said in a statement.The company said its personnel noticed kerosene fuel escaping from the rain water treatment plant within t...

Part of a road at Chadwick Lakes collapsed on Sunday night, after heavy rainfall. The Energy and Water Agency has urged the public not to use the road. It is also in talks with the Environment and Resources Authority to ensure that repair works ...

Two of the most expensive, and most discussed, capital projects of this contemporary era concern Malta’s road and transport infrastructure.On the one hand, we have the Gozo tunnel – a project mentioned in the electoral manifestos of both ...